Author News: The Sound of Books
The Sound of Books
Greetings
To me, books are audiobooks. Audiobooks are books. The sound of stories fills my headphones while I clean, take a walk, or enjoy a solitary lunch.
You probably know that when I was sixteen, I was diagnosed with a degenerative eye condition that resulted in the loss of central vision and caused me to become legally blind – that is to say, with best correction, the vision in the better of my two eyes is 20/200. Or, to put it another way, I can’t see the big E at the top of the eye chart, although I can tell something is there…on a good day, with the better eye, the fuzz takes shape into something I’m reasonably sure is an E.
As a voracious reader, this diagnosis was hard at first. Back in college, I didn’t read much outside my textbooks; it wasn’t fun anymore. My parents signed me up for the National Library Service for the Blind (NLS), but I was twenty-two before I began to take advantage of the unique opportunity. Back then, audiobooks were uncommon outside of the NLS, often recorded onto cassette tapes, and as a result, it was possible to get to the really good part of a book and….and….Nooooooo!!!!!
But despite some technical issues, I did eventually fall in love with audiobooks. I found it easier to lie in bed and read, no longer struggling to find a comfortable position to prop the book. And now that my hands were free, I found ways to occupy them while I listened, which just meant I could read more books than ever before because I didn’t have to stop reading to do the dishes!
Digital streaming made audiobooks more usable, and it has been a treat to watch others delight in the sound of stories, too – never more so than when I began to release my own books in audio format.
You can find the entire Cassie Scot Series, including the spin-offs, on Audible – all narrated by Melissa Reizian Frank, a talented voice actress who impressed me by adding a little throat clearing right before the name in my first line:
“My parents think the longer the name, the more powerful the sorcerer, so they named me Cassandra Morgan Ursula Margaret Scot. You can call me Cassie.”
This month, I’m thrilled to be part of a sales promotion called The Sound of Stories. Thirty audiobook authors have banded together to help amplify one another’s stories, all told through sound.
Author's Corner
I’m excited to say that two weeks ago, I finished a solid draft of a new novel. It will need revision, of course, but I believe the bones are strong. I’ve got the manuscript out for critique now and don’t want to say too much ahead of their feedback, but I am tentatively hopeful that it will be ready to send to agents this fall.
One of the best things about this project is that it’s not the first book in a new series; it’s a stand-alone. The last few projects I’ve completed have been first books in series, which has left me feeling unsure what to do with the manuscripts after I failed to find the publishing situation I wanted. I could self-publish these books, but they end on serious cliffhangers and I am not enthusiastic about writing the sequels until and unless I find the publishing contract I really want. But this new book (title still undecided) is different. If I don’t get my dream publishing contract, I could still publish it myself while staying fair to fans who deserve conclusions to the stories I tell.
These are all considerations for the future, though. For today, I thank you for your continued support of and interest in my work. Don’t forget that leaving reviews, even short and sweet reviews, is gold to an author. Please consider taking a few minutes after reading any book, including mine, to say a few words from the heart.
Best,
Christine Amsden
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